As always, it depends what you want. If it's avocados and it's February, it's going to cost you a bit more.

A cautionary footnote in a financial filing by Chipotle, the fast Mexican food chain, has triggered anxiety in those who worry that avocados are becoming scarce, meaning expensive, and the rising costs will sink the chain. Or something like that. Here's a story from BloombergBusinessWeek that puts it into perspective: "Chipotle isn't that worried about the avocado supply."

Earlier, some nervous brisket consumers in Texas, Kansas City, the Carolinas and certain precincts of Oregon had noted that the rising costs of raising cattle is dampening herd sizes and driving up costs, which will be passed on to consumers. Here's the Fort Worth Star-Telegram with a story that zooms right to the heart of the matter: "Spiraling beef prices causing sticker shock at Texas barbecue smokers."